Show ContentsRoye History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Originally, Roye was a nickname for a person with red hair. Roye is a nickname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname Roye comes from the Gaelic word ruadh, which means red. Thus, the original bearers of the surname Roye would have been known for their red hair, or possibly, a ruddy complexion.

Early Origins of the Roye family

The surname Roye was first found in Lanarkshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Lannraig) a former county in the central Strathclyde region of Scotland, now divided into the Council Areas of North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, and the City of Glasgow, where they held a family seat from very early times, where some say before the Millenium.

Early History of the Roye family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Roye research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1488, 1527, 1550 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Roye History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roye Spelling Variations

Spelling variations were extremely common in medieval names, since scribes from that era recorded names according to sound rather than a standard set of rules. Roye has appeared in various documents spelled Roy, Roys, Roye, Roi, McRoy and others.

Early Notables of the Roye family

Another 45 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Roye Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roye Ranking

In the United States, the name Roye is the 12,145th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [1]

Ireland Migration of the Roye family to Ireland

Some of the Roye family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Roye migration to the United States +

Descendents of Dalriadan-Scottish families still populate many communities across North America. They are particularly common in Canada, since many went north as United Empire Loyalists at the time of the American War of Independence. Much later, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the highland games and Clan societies that now dot North America sprang up, allowing many Scots to recover their lost national heritage. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Roye, or a variant listed above:

Roye Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Donald Roye, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1651 [2]

Contemporary Notables of the name Roye (post 1700) +

  • Paladine Roye (1946-2001), award-winning Native American painter
  • Orpheus Michael Roye (b. 1973), former American football defensive end
  • Tim Roye (1964-2007), American music video director and editor
  • Peter van Roye (b. 1950), German rower
  • Bronwyn Roye (b. 1970), Australian rower
  • Guy de Roye (b. 1409), French prelate
  • Horace Roye (1906-2002), one of English 20th century's pioneering photographers
  • Edward James Roye (1815-1872), served as the fifth President of Liberia
  • Roye Love, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1996; Candidate for Mayor of Carson, California, 2004 [3]


The Roye Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Qua tendis
Motto Translation: Whither do you steer.


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, April 22) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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